SL Dharme Gowda, Karnataka Legislative Council Dy Chairman, dies by suicide; body found on railway track

Karnataka Legislative Council Deputy Chairman SL Dharme Gowda allegedly died by suicide on the intervening night between Monday and Tuesday, media reports said. He was 64 years old. The body of the Janata Dal (Secular) legislator was found on a railway track near Chickmagalur, his home town in the hills of central Karnataka. News18 quoted sources as saying his body was found at around 2 am. The case is being probed for more details, they said. Gowda was in the news recently after the main opposition Congress members manhandled him in the Upper House for trying to chair the session illegally. He was dragged from the chair (the seat of the Chairman) by some Congress members, who alleged that he was seeking to unconstitutionally unseat the Upper House Chairman Pratap Chandra Shetty, who is from the Congress. The BJP has moved a no-confidence motion against the the Chairman and the voting on the no confidence motion is yet to take place in the Legislative Council. A collection of working suicide prevention helpline numbers is available here. Please reach out if you or anyone you know is in need of support. The All-India helpline number is: 022 2754 6669​